Musical box movement and winding means therefor



MUSICAL BOX MOVEMENT AND WINDING MEANS THEREFOR Filed Oct. 5, 1956 P. VOGT March 29, 1960 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 VOGT MUSICAL BOX MOVEMENT AND WINDING MEANS THEREFOR Filed Oct. 3, 1956 2 Sheebs-Sheet 2 IN VEN TOR. BY Paul Vogt United States Patent MUSICAL BOX MOVEMENT AND WINDING MEANS THEREFOR Paul Vogt, Les Hauts-Geneveys, Switzerland, assignor to Derby S.A., La Chaux-de-Fonds, Canton of Neuchatel, Switzerland Application October 3, 1956, Serial No. 613,738

Claims priority, application Switzerland November 26, 1955 Claims. Cl. 84 -95) The present invention relates to a musical box movement of the type in which a motor spring drives a rotary pin-holder member adapted to cooperate with a comb provided with vibrating strips, the speed of rotation of the said member being controlled by a regulator.

In the known constructions of this type there is provided, in addition to the member for winding the motor sprlng, a stem or a button projecting from the movement and serving for immobilizing the gear-work so as to stop the music.

The present invention aims to do away with this additional member for immobilizing the gear-work, or rather to combine it with the winding member, this resulting in the possibility of providing musical boxes of small dimensions and having a single outer control member.

In accordance with the invention the musical box movement has a winding stem axially slidable in the frame of the movement and arranged in such a manner that when it occupies its inner end position, its inner end projects into the path of the regulator and immobilizes the gearwork of the movement.

The accompanying drawings show, by way of example, an embodiment of the invention.

Fig. 1 is a top plan view, partially in section, of this embodiment.

Fig. 2 is an elevation view, partially in section along the line 11-11 in Fig. l, of the same.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the winding stern and of the driving mechanism for a winding ratchet wheel.

Fig. 4 is an elevation view, partially in section, of the winding stem and of the said driving mechanism.

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line VV in Fig. 4.

The musical box movement illustrated in the drawings has a frame or pillar plate 1 having the shape of a parallelepiped, which is placed in any suitable manner in a casing not shown.

On the frame 1 is secured a bridge 2 (Fig. 1). A winding stem 3, carrying at its outer end an actuating crown or button 4, is guided on the one hand in a bore of the bridge 2 and, on the other hand, near its inner end, in a bore 5 of the frame 1, so that it may slide axially in the frame 1. The stem 3 can take two end positions. In Fig. 1 it is shown in its inner end position, i.e. sunk into the frame 1. A snap action device, described hereinafter, enables the winding stem 3 to be held in either end position.

On a cylindrical bearing surface 6 of the stem 3 is rotatably mounted a ratchet wheel 7 serving to transmit the winding force to the motor spring. The surface 6 is provided with two notches 8 and 9 following each other in axial direction but extending only over a fraction of the periphery of the stem 3 (see Figs. 3 and 4). Co'rresponding notches 8 and 9' are staggered by 180 with respect to the notches 8 and 9 respectively. A spring 10 of round section, having substantially the shape of an open 0 surrounds the stem 3 and bears against the bottom of 2,930,272 Patented Mar. 29, 1960 the notches 8, 8' and 9, 9' respectively according to the axial position of the stem 3. A yoke-shaped member 11 has a bore 12 traversed by the stem 3 and bent lugs 13 and 14 the ends of which are driven into the ratchet wheel 7. The lugs 13 and 14 serve, on the one hand, to interlock the yoke 11 with the ratchet wheel 7 and, on the other hand, to provide supporting means to the spring 10 so as to enable the yoke 11 and the ratchet wheel 7 to be rotated when the stem 3 is turned, as explained below.

The ratchet wheel 7 is in mesh with a toothed wheel- 15 (Fig. l) which is fitted on a square portion of a shaft 16 rotatable mounted in the frame 1 by means of its journals 17 and 18. A stop pawl 19, secured between the frame 1 and the bridge 2, has its nose engaged in the teeth of the wheel 15 so that the latter can rotate only in the winding direction. On cylindrical bearing surfaces 20 and 21 of the shaft 16 is rotatably mounted a drum 22 carrying a plurality of pins 23. The motor spring is constituted by a coil spring 25 surrounding the shaft 16. One of the ends of the spring 25 is hooked on a pin 26 set in the cover 27 of the drum 22, whereas its other end enters a hole '28 made in a collar 29 of the shaft 16. When the spring 25 is tensioned, its windings are applied against the shaft 16, whereas they are applied against the inner surface of the drum 22, coated with a layer of cement 24, when the spring is let down. The pins 23 are adapted to cooperate with a comb 30 provided with vibrating strips 31, secured to the frame 1 by means of two screws 32.

At its end remote from the wheel 15 the drum 22 carries a toothed wheel 33 which meshes with a pinion 34 rigidly connected with a wheel 35. The latter drives the regulator pinion 36 over the movable parts 37, 38, 39 and 40. The wheels 35, 38 and 40 with their respective pinions are pivoted on the one hand in a small plate 41 secured to the frame 1 and, on the other hand, in a bridge 42 also secured to the frame 1. The spindle 43 of the regulator is pivoted in the frame 1 and in the bridge 42. The regulator is constituted by a wire 44 curved so as to have the shape of a hair-pin, one end of which is fixed to a co'llet 45 rigidly fixed to the spindle 43, whereas its free end carries a small weight 46. The regulator 44, 46 is housed in a cylindrical casing 47 formed by a recess of the frame 1, and the leaf spring 44 is arranged in such a way that the weight 46 may cooperate for a braking action with the wall of the casing 47 when the regulator rotates at a certain speed.

The device as illustrated and described operates as follows:

For winding the motor spring 25 the actuating crown or button 4 is turned in the winding direction, that is to say in such a direction that the winding stem 3 is turned in the clockwise direction as seen in Fig. 2. This wind-- ing operation may be effected for both axial positions of the stem 3, but preferably in the sunk position of the same, which is illustrated in the drawings. As a matter of fact, in this sunk position, the inner end of the stem 3 projects into the path or trajectory of the regulator weight 46, so that the gear-work of the movement is immobilized. When'the stem 3 is turned in the direction referred to, the edges 49 of the notches 9, 9' or alternatively of the notches 8, 8, act on the portions of the spring 10 which are parallel to the lugs 13 of the yoke 11 and push back these spring portions from each other until they rest against the lugs 13, thus causing the yoke 11 to be set into rotation. This movement is transmitted to the ratchet wheel 7, to the wheel 15 and to the shaft 16, so that the motor spring 25 is being tensioned until its windings are applied against the shaft 16.

For starting the mechanism, the actuating button 4 is pulled towards the outside, so that the winding stem 3 is axially moved outwards and its inner end ceases to project into the path of the regulator weight 46. Through the intermediary of the pin 26 the spring 25 rotates the pin-holder drum 22 which over the gears 33 to 4t) drives the regulator assembly 4 45; Under the action of the centrifugal force, the spring 44 is deformed and the weight 46 rubs against the wall of the casing 47 and produces a' certain braking action guaranteeing a constant speed of rotation of the pin-holder drum 22. V For interrupting the music, it suffices to press down the stem 3 into the frame 1 by acting on the button 4.

The clearance shown in Fig. 5 between the lugs 13 and the long parallel portions of the spring is large enough so as to permit the spring 10 to be suificiently deformed when the stem 3 is displaced in axial direction,

the said spring having to pass from the notches 8, 8' to eter, so that the wheels and 38 can be accommodated While I have described and illustrated one embodi-.

ment of my invention, I do not wish to unnecessarily limit the scope thereof, but reserve the right to make such modifications and rearrangements of the several parts as may come within the purview of the accompanying claims.

What I claim is:

l. A music box movement comprising a frame, a motor, a rotary pin holder member adapted to be driven by the motor and carrying a plurality of pins, a comb blade engageable by said pins of the pin holder member upon rotation of the latter to produce musical sounds, a winding device for winding the motor, a regulator movable along a rotary path for controlling the speed of rotation of the pin holder member, gear means connectconsequently immobilize said gear means for. stoppingv the playing of music.

,2. A music box movement as in'claim 1, further comprising a snap action device operative to yieldably hold said winding stem in each of said inner and outer end positions.

3. A music box movement as in claim 1, wherein said winding device further includesa winding'ratchet wh'e'el connected with said motor, a yoke-shaped member rigidly fixed to said winding ratchet wheel, said winding stem having notches axially arrangedthereon and extending over only a fraction of the periphery of the stem, and a spring surrounding said stem and resting against the bottom of a selected one of said notches according to the axial position of the stem, said spring serving, on the one hand, to yieldably hold the stem in each of said inner and outer end positions and, on the other hand, to transmit the rotation of said stem to said yoke-shaped member and, therefore, to the winding ratchet wheel f r Winding the motor. 2

4. A music box movementaccording to claim 1, wherein said winding device further includes a winding ratchet wheel connected with said motor, a yoke-shaped member rigidly fixed to said winding ratchet wheel, said windingstem having first and second axially arranged pairs of diametrically opposed notches extending over only a part of the periphery of the stem and selectively disposed within said yoke-shaped member when said stem is in said inner end and outer end positions, respectively, an open O-shaped spring surrounding said stem within said yoke-shaped member and engaging in a selected one of said pairs of notches according to the axial position ofthe stem so as to yieldably resist axial displacement of said stem from each of said inner and outer end positions, said yoke-shaped member being radially spaced from the surface of'said stem by a distance less than the thickness of said spring so that, when said stem is turned relative to said yoke-shaped member and windingratchet wheel, said spring becomes wedged between said yoke-shaped member and the edges of the pair of notchesthen receiving the spring in order to transmit rotation of said stem to said yoke-shaped member and, therefore, to the winding ratchet wheel for winding said motor. g

5. A music box movement as in claim 1, wherein said frame has an elongated bore in which said rotary winding stem is axially slidable and a cylindrical recess accommodating said rotary'regulator and into which said bore opens at said inner end of the stem, and wherein said rotary regulator-includes a resilient arm rotating within said cylindrical recess in response to rotation of the pin holder member and having a Weight at its free end engageable with the surface of said cylindrical recess to frictionally brake the rotation of the pin holder member, said weight beinglengageable by said inner end of said stem, when the latter is in said inner end position thereof for achieving the interference with rotation of the regulator.

References (Zited in the file of thispatent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,465,663 Graham Aug. 21, 1923 1,876,753 Reuge Sept. 13,- 1932 2,321,365 Darche June 8, 1943 2,800,048 Anderson July 23, 1957 FOREIGN PATENTS 913,590 France June 3, 1946 247,528 Switzerland Dec. 1, 1947 

